WP Downhill Round #5 Jonkershoek

The final round of the WP DH series took place this past weekend at Jonkershoek in Stellenbosch. Even though it was the same track as last year, everything looked different as the pine plantation was completely cleared, leaving a uncovered track from top to bottom. The plus side was that this made spectating very easy as you could see almost 2 thirds othe track from the finish line.

Saturday’s practice saw a mixed bag of weather, from a cold rainy morning to a sunny warm afternoon. The rain that fell in the days leading up to the weekend left behind some thick mud that made practice very interesting. Apart from a couple of riders, everybody took it easy and tried to stay upright and avoid the deep ruts that formed very quickly.

Sunday turned out to be a perfectly sunny winters day and riders were keen to get to the top and put in some proper practice runs before racing started. Times increased steadily as the track dried out some more and racing was tight with the top 5 separated by only 2.6 seconds at the end of the day. Luke Davis was typically smooth and took the top spot with a time of 2.24.88. 2nd spot went to Theo Erlangsen (also winner of the Junior Men’s race) with a time of 2.25.18. Rounding up the top 3 was Adriaan Smit in 2.26.11.

The track builders, lead by Bennet Nel, and Vince Muir did an awesome job of preparing a smooth a flowy track during a very rainy month. Race organizers and marshals ensured everything went smooth and an injury free race rounded off everything nicely.